It has become increasingly popular to use high speed non-impact printers (e.g. laser printers, such as the Xerox 9790, Kodak 1392, and IBM 3827) in the production of carbonless business forms. However, in a typical manufacture of carbonless business forms utilizing such sheets, line hole punch intermediate parts must be utilized. This is undesirable in many situations.
According to the present invention, it is possible to utilize high speed non-impact printers--typically having two infeed lines for printing paper--to form multiple part carbonless business forms without the necessity of using line hole punch sheets in the intermediate parts. Almost any finite number of parts can be produced, from either straight precollated or reverse precollated infeeds.
One of the keys to the present invention is the provision of the parts necessary in order to construct multipart forms so that they have a minimum number of configurations, yet may be utilized to produce carbonless business forms of any number of parts--e.g., five- and six-part forms are readily produced according to the invention, and utilizing the same sheets as the two, three, and four-part forms.
According to one aspect of the present invention, an assembly of sheets for constructing carbonless multipart business forms is provided, typically disposed in trays of a non-impact printer. The sheets comprise: a plurality of CB sheets of the same construction, each of the CB sheets having a first edge with an adhesive strip on the CB face spaced a first distance from the first edge. A plurality of each of two different types of CF sheets, comprising first and second CF sheets, each of the first CF sheets having an adhesive strip on the CF face spaced the first distance from a first edge thereof, and each of the second CF sheets having an adhesive strip on the CF face spaced a second distance from the first edge thereof; and a plurality of each of two different types of CFB sheets, comprising first and second CFB sheets, each of the first CFB sheets having an adhesive strip on the CF face spaced the first distance from a first edge thereof, and an adhesive strip on the CB face spaced the second distance from the first edge, and each of the second CFB sheets having an adhesive strip on the CF face spaced the second distance from the first edge thereof, and an adhesive strip on the CB face spaced the first distance from the first edge thereof.
Each of the adhesive strips is preferably linear, although they may have other geometric configurations, and may be either continuous or discontinuous. Preferably, the adhesive is pressure activated permanent adhesive, such as that sold commercially by Moore Business Forms, Inc. of Lake Forest, Illinois, and acted upon by a commercial Moore pressure sealer Model 4800B. Strips of adhesive need not be applied adjacent to just one edge, but may be applied to two or more edges. The first distance is typically about 1/16 to about 1/8 inch, while the second distance is about 1/4 to about 3/8 inch, while each strip has a width of about 1/8 inch. Perforations, or like conventional form constructions, may be associated with the sheets, e.g. adjacent to the adhesive lines.
While pressure sensitive adhesive is preferred, heat activated adhesive may also be employed. Such adhesive could be used with a Moore Heat Sealer Model 4200 (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,818,332), or a Moore Edge Sealer.
The sheets, after printing with a non-impact printer, may be assembled into multipart business forms. A three-part business form has, in sequence, from top to bottom, a CB sheet, a first CFB sheet, and a second set CF sheet. A four-part form has in sequence, from top to bottom, a CB sheet, a first CFB sheet, a second CFB sheet, and a first CF sheet, A five-part form has in sequence, from top to bottom, a CB sheet, a first CFB sheet, a second CFB sheet, a first CFB sheet, and a second CF sheet. A six-part form has in sequence, from top to bottom, a CB sheet, a first CFB sheet, a second CFB sheet, a first CFB sheet, a second CFB sheet, and a first CF sheet.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a method of assembling carbonless multipart forms with any number of desired parts, without using line hole punched sheets is provided. The method comprises the steps of: (a) Feeding a CB sheet to a collecting station. (b) Feeding a first CFB sheet to the collecting station so that the adhesive strip on the CF face thereof is in alignment with the adhesive strip on the CB sheet CB face, to initiate a stack of sheets at the collecting station; and (c) feeding at least one other sheet, including a CF sheet, to the collecting station so that the adhesive strips on each sheet face are in alignment with like adhesive strips on the adjacent sheets in the stack of sheets in the collecting station. Preferably there is the further step (d), after step (c) of applying heat and/or pressure to the stack of sheets, with aligned adhesive strips, at the aligned adhesive strips only, so that the adhesive--which is pressure or heat activated permanent adhesive--seals the sheets together. Also, there preferably is the further step of individually printing each sheet with a non-impact printer during feeding of each sheet to the collecting station. Step (c) is practiced, feeding the appropriate sheets from appropriate trays or other sources of paper for the laser printer, to produce the three, four, five and six multipart forms described above (or any other number of parts).
The invention also contemplates equipment for forming carbonless multipart business forms from CB, CF and/or CFB sheets having aligned strips of heat and/or pressure activated permanent adhesive thereon. The equipment comprises: A non-impact printer having at least first and second sources for CB, CF, and/or CFB sheets, and a printed sheet discharge. An accumulator connected to the printed sheet discharge of the printer, for accumulating and aligning printed sheets from the printer so that they are in precisely aligned stacks, the accumulator having an accumulated stack discharge. A pressure sealer connected to the accumulated stack discharge of the accumulator for applying pressure only to the strips of pressure activated adhesive on the stacked sheets to permanently seal the sheets together, the pressure sealer having a discharge. And, collecting means for collecting sealed forms from the pressure sealer, the collecting means connected to the discharge from the pressure sealer. All of the collecting means, pressure sealer, accumulator, and printer are preferably on wheeled supports, so that they can be easily moved into operative association with each other. A heat sealer could be used in place of the pressure sealer.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide for the effective manufacture of multipart carbonless business forms utilizing non-impact printers, without the necessity of utilizing line hole punched sheets in the intermediate parts. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention, and from the appended claims.